English:
Belgium Secures Narrow Victory Over North Macedonia in Skopje
Skopje, North Macedonia – Belgium secured a hard-fought victory on their visit to the Toše Proeski Arena, in a match corresponding to the European qualifying phase for the World Cup. Despite Belgium’s dominance in ball possession (68% compared to North Macedonia’s 32%), the match was more balanced than the statistics suggest.
The first goal of the match came in the 28th minute, scored by M. De Cuyper for Belgium. The first half was characterized by tactical play and defensive precautions, reflected in the yellow cards shown to J. Atanasov for North Macedonia and T. Meunier for Belgium.
The second half began with a goal disallowed for B. Ilievski due to offside in the 48th minute, frustrating North Macedonia’s aspirations to equalize the score quickly. The match continued with intensity, accumulating yellow cards for several Macedonian players: V. Musliu, B. Ilievski, E. Bardhi and D. Mitrovski, showing the intensity of the game and disputes for the ball. M. Ristovski also received a yellow card in added time.
In the final minutes, E. Alioski scored a goal for North Macedonia in the 87th minute, fueling hopes of a possible draw, but time was not enough. Belgium managed to maintain their lead and took the three points from Skopje.
The match was characterized by a high number of fouls (12 for North Macedonia and 11 for Belgium) and a large number of corner kicks in favor of Belgium (10). Despite the difference in possession and shots (17 for Belgium, 7 for North Macedonia), the final result reflects the competitiveness of the match and the effort of both teams.
Final score: FYR Macedonia 1 – Belgium 1
Substitutions fyr macedonia: at minute 46 A. Elezi came in and J. Atanasov went out., at minute 57 D. Churlinov came in and A. Stojcevski went out., at minute 80 S. Ashkovski came in and B. Ilievski went out., at minute 80 D. Mitrovski came in and T. Kostadinov went out., at minute 85 M. Ristovski came in and B. Miovski went out.
Substitutions belgium: at minute 56 A. Onana came in and H. Vanaken went out., at minute 56 K. De Winter came in and T. Meunier went out., at minute 56 Y. Tielemans came in and K. De Bruyne went out., at minute 78 A. Theate came in and M. De Cuyper went out., at minute 82 L. Openda came in and R. Lukaku went out.
The teams lined up as follows:
FYR Macedonia
Titulares:
Belgium
Titulares:
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